verbund-kraftwerk-braunau-simbach-historisch

Braunau-Simbach Run-of-River Plant

VERBUND’s Braunau Simbach power plant is a run-of-river power plant on River Inn, situated in the municipalities of Ranshofen (Upper Austria) and Kirchdorf am Inn (Bavaria).

The Braunau-Simbach power plant was built between 1951 and 1954. Construction actually commenced in 1943, but was not completed due to a shortage of materials caused by the war. Work then continued in 1951. Today, four vertical Kaplan turbines generate an average of about 550 GWh of electricity annually.

Aerial view of the regulated Inn and the neighbouring near-natural alluvial landscape

Simbach-Braunau fish pass

In the coming years, the Inn power plant Simbach-Braunau will be given a near-natural fish pass. A bypass river will give fish a way to overcome the 12 metre height difference. The bypass river also offers fish and other forms of aquatic life a place to live, spawn and retreat to. The project is funded with means from the EU LIFE Fund and is part of the LIFE Riverscape Lower Inn project.

Simbach-Braunau fish pass

Green infrastructure for the region

The ecological upgrade of stream landscapes with a green infrastructure is creating healthier ecosystems with greater species diversity and new habitats for these species. These four stream landscapes are the Große Kößlbach, the confluence of the Saagbach with the Danube, the Simbach and the polder area of the Weitbach and the Westerndorfer Graben. This project is funded by the European Region under the INTERREG V-A Programme Austria–Bavaria 2014–2020.

More about the INTERREG programme

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Owner	Österreichisch-Bayerische Kraftwerke AG
Operator	Grenzkraftwerke GmbH
Commissioning	1954
Type	Run-of-river power plant
Country	Germany, Austria
Region	Bavaria, Upper Austria
Waters	Inn
Output	100 MW
Annual output	550,000 MWh
Turbine	Kaplan
Connectivity	Fish bypass under construction

Owner	Österreichisch-Bayerische Kraftwerke AG
Operator	Grenzkraftwerke GmbH
Commissioning	1954
Type	Run-of-river power plant
Country	Germany, Austria
Region	Bavaria, Upper Austria
Waters	Inn
Output	100 MW
Annual output	550,000 MWh
Turbine	Kaplan
Connectivity	Fish bypass under construction

Ecology & environmental protection

The construction of a fish bypass at the Braunau-Simbach power plant is currently being planned.

At the beginning of 2017, a number of ecological measures were completed at the Braunau-Simbach site. The existing bank protection was removed over a length of almost 400 metres and a flat bank created. Some of the trees and bushes to be removed were replaced as rough or structured trees on the emerging flat bank. This can result in small, sustainable bays which, in combination with the deadwood structure, form valuable habitats for juvenile fish and present formative, near-natural landscape elements. In the area where the bank was removed, it must be considered that the bank will change morphologically during flooding and give rise to dynamic bank zones with a continuous transition between wetland and river.

The plant group of the border power plants was certified under ISO 14001 for the first time at the end of 2017. The power plants on the rivers Inn and Danube in the border area between Austria and Germany not only fulfil the statutory requirements but also focus on high environmental standards and technical innovations. Goals include the efficient use of hydropower and a balance between economy and ecology. The effectiveness and benefit of the environmental management system are mainly the responsibility of our employees, who undergo constant training and development in this area.

Wherever ecologically valuable and technically feasible, VERBUND has set itself the goal of guaranteeing the continuity of flow for domestic fish and aquatic life at the locations of its hydropower plants. By 2025, VERBUND will invest 280 million euros on the implementation of fish bypasses and other ecological structural measures.

Fish bypasses safeguard the variety of species

Turbines and generators: Four Kaplan turbines with vertical shaft and a maximum output of 100.0 MW are the heart of the power plant. The four directly coupled three-phase synchronous generators have a nominal output of 35 MVA.

Transformers: The electricity generated is raised from 10.5 kV to 110 kV by means of four high-voltage main transformers and fed into the grid via the open-air switchgear at two 110 k lines on the Austrian side and two on the Bavarian side. The supply of the plant’s own energy needs and that of the four pumping stations in the reservoir area is guaranteed by a 1,250 kVA own-energy transformer.

Weir system: Five weir fields with a clear width of 23 metres each and 6 metre-wide piers are equipped with double hook gates with a closing height of 13.7 metres each. The power plant belongs to the “border power plants” group, which is noted for its geographical location on the rivers Inn and Danube, where they form the border between Austria and Bavaria.